These plans always seem fanciful or wasteful at first. Any mission of exploration has always been met with derision. Based on past history, it will indeed take

These plans always seem fanciful or wasteful at first. Any mission of exploration has always been met with derision. Based on past history, it will indeed take a long time for space colonies to break even, not to mention self sustaining or profitable. Despite the caveats above, building a sustainable earth-to-orbit-to-various targets is probably the most significant thing that could happen in the next few decades.